Levine. Louis. Women's Garment Workers, Manuscript.
Collection Number: 6036/005
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library
Title:
Levine. Louis. Women's Garment Workers,
Manuscript., 1924-1924
Collection Number:
6036/005
Creator:
Levine, Louis
Quantity:
2.5 linear ft.
Forms of Material:
Articles, reprints, pamphlets, correspondence,
photographs.
Repository:
Kheel Center for Labor-Management Documentation and Archives,
Cornell University Library
Abstract:
This collection includes drafts of Louis Levine's "The Women's
Garment Workers" (1924), notes and collected materials about the International Ladies' Garment
Workers' Union.
Language:
Collection material in English
Founded in 1900 by local union delegates representing about 2,000 members in cities in the
northeastern United States, the ILGWU grew in geographical scope, membership size, political
influence to become one of the most powerful forces in American organized labor by mid-century.
Representing workers in the women's garment industry, the ILGWU worked to improve working and
living conditions of its members through collective bargaining agreements, training programs,
health care facilities, cooperative housing, educational opportunities, and other efforts. In
1995, the ILGWU merged with the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union (ACTWU) to form
the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE).
Louis Levine (Lewis Lorwin) was a noted economist and labor historian. He was born in the
Ukraine on December 3, 1883. After coming to the United States as a young boy and studying both
in the U. S. and abroad, he received a Ph. D. from Columbia University in 1912. Levine was an
economic advisor for the New York State Labor Department from 1912 to 1916. He held numerous
lecturer and professorship positions at colleges and universities across the country including
Columbia, Wellesley College, University of Montana, and Beloit College. Levine was a staff
member at the Brookings Institution from 1925 to 1935 and also taught and served as acting
director at the Brookings Graduate School of Economics and Government. In 1934, Levine helped to
found the National Planning Association, and beginning in 1935, he was an economic advisor to
the International Labor Office in Geneva. During the 1940s, Levine served as an economic advisor
to various agencies including the National Resources Planning Board, the Foreign Economic
Administration, and the Office of International Trade in the Department of Commerce.
Levine authored many books on economics and international relations such as "The Labor
Movement in France," "The Taxation of Mines in Montana," and "The Women's Garment Workers." In
1961, Levine was the recipient of the John Dewey Medal from the League for Industrial Democracy.
He died in June 1970 at the age of 86.
Published in 1924, "The Women's Garment Workers" is a comprehensive history of the first
twenty four years of the International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union. The book also provides
background information on the women's garment industry, its beginnings, early conditions,
struggles, and the initial attempts at unionization which laid the foundation for the birth of
the ILGWU. The collection encompasses author Louis Levine's research and notes for "The Women's
Garment Workers," offering a glimpse into his writing process. Included are handwritten notes by
Levine reviewing AFL convention proceedings to find references to the ILGWU, and notes and
research on benefits, such as death, disability, sick and strike. There are clippings and
collected articles on various topics along with Levine's notes on subjects ranging from Chicago
cloak makers, the cloak and suit industry, and financial information. Levine took notes after
reviewing the General Executive Board meeting minutes. Also available is material from various
locals. Part of the collection is arranged by specific topics, including organizing, hours and
wages, socialism, strike reports, as well as miscellaneous material at the end of the collection
arranged by date. The other half of the collection is arranged by chapters for the book and
contains notes, research, facts and dates. Of particular interest to the researcher is the large
amount of research and primary sources that Levine has collected for the purpose of writing his
book that provides historical information on the ILGWU.
Names:
Levine, Louis.
International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union -- Archives.
Form and Genre Terms:
Records
Access Restrictions:
Access to the collections in the Kheel Center is restricted. Please contact a reference
archivist for access to these materials.
Restrictions on Use:
This collection must be used in keeping with the Kheel Center Information Sheet and
Procedures for Document Use.
Cite As:
Levine. Louis. Women's Garment Workers, Manuscript. #6036/005. Kheel Center for
Labor-Management Documentation and Archives, Cornell University Library.
Container
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Description
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Date
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Box 1 | Folder 1 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 2 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 3 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 4 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 5 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 6 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 7 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 8 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 9 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 10 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 11 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 12 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 13 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 14 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 15 | ||
Box 1 | Folder 16 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 1 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 2 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 3 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 4 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 5 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 6 | 1913-1914 | |
Box 2 | Folder 7 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 8 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 9 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 10 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 11 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 12 | ||
Box 2 | Folder 13 | ||
Box 3 | Folder 1 | ||
Box 3 | Folder 2 | ||
Box 3 | Folder 3 | ||
Box 3 | Folder 4 | 1912-1913 | |
Box 3 | Folder 5 | 1918-1922 | |
Box 3 | Folder 6 | 1912-1916 | |
Box 3 | Folder 7 | ||
Box 3 | Folder 8 | 1915-1916 | |
Box 3 | Folder 9 | ||
Box 3 | Folder 10 | 1914-1923 | |
Box 4 | Folder 1 | 1916 | |
Box 4 | Folder 2 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 3 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 4 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 5 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 6 | 1924-1932 | |
Includes letter from Fannia Cohn.
|
|||
Box 4 | Folder 7 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 8 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 9 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 10 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 11 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 12 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 13 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 14 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 15 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 16 | 1914-1916 | |
Box 4 | Folder 17 | 1915-1924 | |
Box 4 | Folder 18 | 1922 | |
Box 4 | Folder 19 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 20 | 1923-1924 | |
Box 4 | Folder 21 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 22 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 23 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 24 | ||
Box 4 | Folder 25 | ||
Box 5 | Folder 1 | ||
Box 5 | Folder 2 | ||
Box 5 | Folder 3 | 1909-1910 | |
Chapter 21, part 3.
|
|||
Box 5 | Folder 4 | 1920-1921 | |
Correspondence.
|
|||
Box 5 | Folder 5 | 1913-1916 | |
Box 5 | Folder 6 | ||
Box 5 | Folder 7 | ||
Box 5 | Folder 8 | 1918-1923 | |
Box 5 | Folder 9 | 1913-1914 | |
Box 5 | Folder 10 | 1910-1914 | |
Box 5 | Folder 11 | 1903-1907 | |
Box 5 | Folder 12 | 1900-1910 |